Weft thread control device



July 12, 1966 v. svAT? ETAL 3,250,283

WEFT THREAD CONTROL DEVICE Filed Dec. 23, 1963 INVENTORY Vlad/40h M BY K ZQW Par- &4

United States Patent 3,260,283 WEFT THREAD CONTROL DEVICE Vladimir Svaty and Miloslav Pavlu, Liberec, Czechoslovakia, assignors to Elitex Sdruzeni podniku Tertilniho strojirenstvi, Liberec, Czechoslovakia Filed Dec. 23, 1963, Ser. No. 332,800 Claims priority, application Czechoslovakia, Dec. 23, 1962, 7,243/ 62 Claims. (Cl. 139-370) The invention relates to a simple and reliable weft thread control device for looms, more particularly quick running looms, such as jet looms, looper looms and the like.

This device operates outside the fabric, that is either at the edge or the end of the weft insertion path, and it stops the machine by making or breaking an electric circuit.

Various mechanisms have already been disclosed which control the weft thread also on jet looms; however, known mechanisms of this type are attended with the drawback of a rather high moment of inertia, or that they are designed in such a manner that, in consequence of a working period. which is insufficient for the passage of electric current, they do not always work in a reliable manner. These mechanisms are often complicated and therefore expensive, or they require very skilled attendance. Very pretentious is the attendance especially of those systems in which the stopping current circuit in the case of a weft thread breakage is either made or broken and in which the weaver has to bring the control mechanisms manually back into the original control position, before the machine is again started.

Systems have also been disclosed in which the control needle or fork is woven into the web and controls the weft thread with suflicient accuracy. But with some kinds of the treated material this leaves a trace in the web which cannot even be removed by final dressing or finishing.

The broad object of this invention is to remove the above mentioned drawbacks of the known state of art and to provide a simple, reliable and completely automatic control device of the above mentioned type.

The present invention is based on the fact, that the control element is provided by a freely rotatable needle which forms also one pole of the electric circuit for stopping the machine and which performs a swinging movement which depends on the movement of the loom slay, the second pole of the said electric circuit being arranged in the path of the swinging movement of this two-armed needle.

A correctly inserted weft thread swings the two-armed needle during its swinging movement out of the position in which it might come into contact with the said second pole of the electric circuit. But if the weft thread has not been inserted, the needle is brought together with this second pole so that the electric circuit which stops the machine is made. The second pole is placed between a pair of insulators and designed together with the latter as rotatable disks of different diameters.

Other objects, advantages and features of the invention will be apparent from the following specification to be read in conjunction with the accompanying drawing which illustrates a preferred example of the invention by means of a schematic perspective view.

Referring now more particularly to the single figure of the drawing it can be seen that the control element of the device in accordance with the invention is formed by a two-armed contact needle 1 which is adjustably positioned in a freely rotatable pin 2, the latter being positioned on the longer arm of a two-armed carrier lever 3, rotatably mounted on a pin 4 attached in the 3,269,283 Patented July 12, 1966 notch 5 of the base plate 6, the latter being firmly and stationarily positioned in the machine frame. The shorter arm of the two-armed lever 3 is biased by the constant pull of a spring 7 which is attached with its other end to a pin 8 positioned in the base plate 6. The spring 7 tends to rotate the two-armed carrier lever 3 anticlockwise into a position in which its longer arm will rest on the seat 9 of the notch 5.

A leaf spring 11 is attached to the base plate 6 by means of screws 10, and on the free end of this leaf spring 11 are mounted, by means of screw 12, plates 13, 14 and 15. The plates 13 and 15 are made of electrically non-conducting materials, and the plate 14 is a circular contact made of an electrically conducting material. The contact 14 and contact needle 1 form a contact means or switch connected in a known manner which has not been illustrated in electric stopping circuit by which the loom is stopped when contact needle 1 engages the circular peripheral contact surface of contact 14. The plate 15 has preferably the largest diameter and the plate 14 has the smallest diameter, the diameter of plate 13 being somewhat larger than the diameter of the plate 14 and somewhat smaller than the diameter of the plate 15. The shorter arm 23 of the two-armed needle 1 rest in its rest position on the plate 15 and the action of spring 20.

A pin 17 is positioned on an extension or lug 16 of the longer arm of the two-armed lever 3. This pin 17 is provided with a stop 18 and an eye 19 which holds one end of the tension spring 20. The other end of this spring is held in the eye 21 of the longer lower arm of the two-armed needle 1. The cam follower roller 22 which consists of electrically non-conducting material is mounted freely rotatable on the pin 17. In the time during which the two-armed needle 1 is not subjected to any other influence, the spring holds this needle 1 in the position shown in the figure, that is in the operative position in which the needle 1 rests against the stop 18 and in which, in case of a swing of the twoarmed lever 3 about the pin 4 in the clockwise direction, the upper shorter arm 23 of the two-armed needle 1 will come into contact with the electrically conducting contact plate 14. Contact 14 is connected by conductor 11' to one terminal, and contact needle 1 is connected by conductor 3' to the other terminal of a means 35 which includes an electric arrangement adapted to be actuated by closing of contacts 14 and 23 so as to stop the loom in the usual manner. If the two-armed needle 1 is swung out from the illustrated position in the clockwise direction around the'pin 2, it is swung back into the original position by the spring 20 in the opposite direction, that is anticlockwise.

On the loom slay 24 which performs the usual swinging movement to both sides, is positioned the usual weavers reed 25, and on the end of the loom slay 24 is arranged the cam 26. Heddle means 29 form the warp sheds 29 in the usual manner. As the loom slay 24 moves into the starting position in the direction of the arrow S the cam 26 acts upon the freely rotatable cam follower roller 22 which causes the two-armed lever 3 to swing clockwise about the pin 4.

As the loom slay 24 moves into the starting position, the lower end of the two-armed needle 1 passes into the gap between the reed 25 and the cam 26 and if the weft thread 27 has been correctly inserted by means of the nozzle or jet 28 into the shed 29, the weft thread 27 which rest on the one hand on the reed and on the other hand on the front wall 30 of the cam 26, beats against the lower end of the needle 1 and rotates the same about the pin 2 to an inoperative position against the pull of the spring 20 in the clockwise direction.

The two-armed needle 1 can form one pole of the 3 electric circuit and the second pole can be formed by the contact plate 14. The electric circuit is closed by contact of the upper shorter end 23 of the two-armed contact needle 1 with the contact plate 14, and this causes in any known manner the machine to be stopped.

The above described device works in the following manner:

The loom slay 24, the reed 25 and the cam 26 perform together in a known manner a swinging movement about a known non-illustrated bottom slay axis, the slay moving in the direction S at the beginning, as can be seen from the figure. In the position illustrated in the figure, the loom slay 24 is shown shortly before the correctly inserted weft thread 27 beats against the lower end of the two-armed needle 1, and also before the cam 26 begins to act upon the roller 22 of the two-armed lever 3.

Before the weft thread 27 beats against the lower end of the two-armed needle 1, the entire needle control mechanism is also in a position which is shown in the figure, namely: by the pull of the spring 7, the two-armed lever 3 rests upon the seat 9 of the notch in the base plate 6. The lower end of the two-armed needle 1 rests, at the same time, due to the pull of the spring 20 against the stop 18 of the pin 17, and the shorter arm 23 of the needle rest against the plate of nonconducting material.

If the weft thread27 has been correctly inserted, as shown in the figure, the thread beats in the first place against the lower end of the two-armed needle 1, and during further movement of the loom slay 24 in the direction S that is towards the woven fabric, the weft thread rotates the needle 1 about the pin 2 and against the pull of the spring 20 in the clockwise direction. But, at the same time, the cam 26 runs upon the roller 22 and it begins to rotate the two-armed lever about the pin 4 in the clockwise direction, the longer arm of this lever 3 moving with the pin 2 and the two-armed needle 1 upwards. Due to the fact that the two-armed lever 1, as above said, has already been swung earlier by the weft thread 27 from its original position in the clockwise direction, the shorter arm 23 of the needle 1 is 'in an inoperative position and passes the contact plate 13 so that the electric circuit is not made and the loom continues its work. In the meantime, the loom slay begins its return movement to its rear dead center position, and the cam 26 ceases to act upon the roller 22 and it returns to its original position by action of the spring 7, in this position it comes to rest against the seat 9 of the notch 5. As the loom slay 24 moves into the rear dead point, the weft thread ceases also to act upon the lower end of the two-armed needle 1, and the latter comes again to rest upon the stop 18 by action of the spring 20, and the entire control mechanisms occupies again its initial position. Upon return of the shorter arm 23 of the two-armed needle 1 into the original position, the plate 13 which is made of electrically nonconducting material prevents accidental contact of this arm 23 'with the contact plate 14.

But if the weft thread 27 has not been inserted correctly, and if it does not rest on the reed 25 and the front wall of the cam 26 as the loom slay moves into the starting position, the weft thread cannot swing the lower end of the two-armed needle 1 against the pull of the spring 20 about the pin 2 so that, as soon as the cam 26 begins by action upon the roller 22 to rotate the two-armed lever 3 clockwise about the pin 4 and against the pull of the spring 7, the shorter arm 23 of the two-armed needle 1 in the operative position meets the contact plate 14 during this movement, and the electric circuit is made, and this stops the machine in the usual manner. The larger plate 15 which consists of non-conducting material assists in guiding the shorter arm 23 of the two-armed needle 1 upon the contact plate 14.

After removal of the defect caused by non-insertion of the weft thread 27 and after setting the machine again into movement, the loom slay returns again to the rear dead center position, and the entire mechanism returns into its initial position, as already described.

It should be obvious to those skilled in the art with reference to the specification and to the drawing, that the entire control device possesses a very small inertia and operates therefore very reliably even at a very high speed of the loom with more than 400 beats per minute.

If certain parts of the plates 13, 14 and 15 become worn by prolonged use, the plates may be rotated to get new unused contact surfaces.

What We claim is:

1. In a loom including heddle means for forming warp sheds, and a reciprocating slay having reed means for beating during a forward stroke a weft thread inserted into a Warp shed, in combination, a weft thread stop motion comprising, in combination, carrier means mounted on the loom and being operated by said slay to reciprocate between first and second positions; and contact means for controlling a circuit including means for stopping the loom, said contact means including a stationary first contact member, a second'contact member mounted on said carrier means for movement relative to the same between an operative position for engaging said first contact member in said first position of said carrier means and an inoperative position spaced from said first contact member in said first position of said carrier means, said second contact member being spaced from said first contact member in said second position of said carrier means, and means urging said second contact member into said operative position, said second contact member located partly in the path of movement of a properly inserted weft thread beaten by said reed means during the forward stroke of said slay so as to be engaged and moved by a properly inserted weft thread from said operative into said inoperative position thereof while said second contact member remains in said operative position if the weft thread is not properly inserted so that during movement of said carrier means from said second to said first position thereof said second contact member in said operative position thereof will engage said first contact member and thus stop said loom.

2. In a loom including heddle means for forming warp sheds, and a reciprocating slay having reed means for beating during a forward stroke a weft thread inserted into a warp shed, in combination, a weft thread stop motion comprising, in combination, carrier means mounted on the loom and being operated by said slay to reciprocate between first and second positions; and contact means for controlling a circuit including means for stopping the loom, said contact means including a stationary first contact, a second resilient contact mounted on said carrier means for movement relative to the same between an operative position for resiliently engaging said first contact in said first position of said carrier means and an inoperative position spaced from said first contact in said first position of said carrier means, said second contact being spaced from said first contact in said second position of said carrier means, and means urging said second contact into said operative position, said second contact located partly in the path of movement of a properly inserted weft thread beaten by said reed means during the forward stroke of said slay so as to be engaged and moved by a properly inserted weft thread from said operative into said inoperative position thereof while said second contact remains in said operative position if the weft thread is not properly inserted so that during movement of said carrier means from said second to said first position thereof said second contact in said operative position thereof will engage said first contact and thus stop said loom.

3. In a loom including heddle means for forming warp sheds, and a reciprocating slay having reed means for beating during a forward stroke a weft thread inserted into a warp shed, in combination, a weft thread stop mo tion comprising, in combination, carrier means mounted on the loom and being operated by said slay to reciprocate between first and second positions; and contact means for controlling a circuit including means for stopping the loom, said contact means including a stationary contact, a contact needle mounted on said carrier means for tuming movement relative to the same between an operative position for resiliently engaging said stationary contact in said first position of said carrier means and an inoperative position spaced from said stationary contact in said first position of said carrier means, said contact needle being spaced from said stationary contact in said second position of said carrier means, and spring means urging said contact needle into said operative position, said contact needle located partly in the path of movement of a properly inserted weft thread beaten by said reed means during the forward stroke of said slay so as to be engaged and moved by a properly inserted weft thread from said operative into said inoperative position thereof while said contact needle remains in said operative position if the weft thread is not properly inserted so that during movement of said carrier means from said second to said first position thereof said contact needle in said operative position thereof will engage said stationary contact member and thus stop said loom.

4. In a loom including heddle means for forming warp sheds, and a reciprocating slay having reed means for beating during a forward stroke a Weft thread inserted into a warp shed, in combination, a weft thread stop motion comprising, in combination, carrier means including a lever turnably mounted on the loom and being operated by said slay to reciprocate between first and second positions; and contact means for controlling a circuit including means for stopping the 100m, said contact means including a stationary contact, a contact needle, means for mounting said contact needle intermediate the ends thereof on said carrier means for turning movement relative to the same between an operative position for resiliently engaging with one of said ends said stationary contact in said first position of said carrier means and an inoperative position in which said one end is spaced from said stationary contact in said first position of said carrier means, said contact needle being spaced from said stationary contact in said second position of said carrier means, and spring means urging said contact needle into said operative position, said contact needle having at the other end thereof a portion located in the path of movement of an inserted Weft thread beaten by said reed means during a forward stroke of said slay so that said needle portion is engaged and said needle turned by said weft thread to said inoperative position thereof while said contact needle remains in said operative position thereof if no weft thread is properly inserted so that during movement of said carrier means from said second to said first position thereof said contact needle engages said stationary contact and stops the loom.

5. In a loom including heddle means for forming warp sheds, and a reciprocating slay having a cam portion and reed means for beating during a forward stroke a weft thread inserted into a warp shed, in combination, a weft thread stop mot-ion comprising, in combination, carrier means including a lever turnably mounted on the loom, and a cam follower means mounted on said lever cooperating with said cam portion so that said lever is angularly reciprocated by said slay to reciprocate between first and second positions; and contact means for controlling a circuit including means for stopping the loom, said contact means including a stationary contact, a contact needle, means for mounting said contact needle intermediate the ends thereof on said carrier means for turning movement relative to the same between an operative position for resiliently engaging with one of said ends said stationary contact in said first position of said carrier means and an inoperative position in which said one end is spaced from said stationary contact in said first position of said carrier means, said contact needle being spaced from said stationary contact in said second position of said carrier means, and spring means urging said contact needle into said operative position, said contact needle having at the other end thereof a portion located in the path of movement of an inserted weft thread beaten by said reed means during a forward stroke of said slay so that said needle portion is engaged and said needle turned by said weft thread to said inoperative position thereof while said contact needle remains in said operative position thereof if no weft thread is properly inserted so that during movement of said carrier means from said second to said first position thereof said contact needle engages said stationary contact and stops the loom.

6. In a loom including heddle means for forming warp sheds, and a reciprocating slay having reed means for beating during a forward stroke a weft thread inserted into a warp shed, in combination, a weft thread stop motion comprising, in combination, carrier means mounted on the loom and being operated by said slay to reciprocate between first and second positions; and contact means for controlling a circuit including means for stopping the loom, said contact means including a member mounted on said loom for turning movement about a stationary axis and including a pair of insulating plates and a stationary contact between said plates having a peripheral contact surface, a contact needle mounted on said carrier means for turning movement relative to the same between an operative position for resiliently engaging said contact surface of said stationary contact in said first position of said carrier means and an inoperative position spaced from said stationary contact in said first position of said carrier means, said contact needle being spaced from said stationary contact in said second position of said carrier means, and spring means urging said contact needle into said operative position, said contact needle having a portion located in the path of movement of an inserted weft thread beaten by said reed means during a forward stroke of said slay so that said needle portion is engaged and said needle turned by said weft thread to said inoperative position thereof while said contact needle remains in said operative position thereof if no weft thread is properly inserted so that during movement of said carrier means from said second to said first position thereof said contact needle engages said stationary contact and stops the loom.

7. A weft stop motion as set forth in claim 6 wherein said contact face is circular, and wherein said insulating plates are circular and have different diameters greater than the diameter of said contact surface.

8. In a loom including heddle means for forming warp sheds, and a reciprocating slay having a cam portion and reed means for beating during a forward stroke a weft thread inserted into a warp shed, in combination, a weft thread stop motion comprising, in combination, carrier means including a lever turnably mounted on the loom, and a cam follower means mounted on said lever cooperating with said cam portion so that said lever is angularly reciprocated by said slay to reciprocate between first and second positions; and contact means for controlling a circuit including means for stopping the loom, said contact means including a member mounted on said loom for turning movement about a stationary axis and including a pair of insulating plates and a stationary contact between said plates having a peripheral contact surface, a contact needle, means for mounting said contact needle intermediate the ends thereof on said carrier means for turning movement relative to the same between an operative position for resiliently engaging with one of said ends said contact surface of said stationary contact in said first position of said carrier means and an inoperative position in which said one end is spaced from said stationary contact in said first position of said carrier means, said contact needle being spaced from said stationary contact in said second position of said carrier means, and

spring means urging said contact needle into said operative position, said contact needle having at the other end thereof a portion located in the path of movement of an inserted weft thread beaten by said reed means during a forward stroke of said slay so that said needle portion is engaged and said needle turned by said weft thread to said inoperative position thereof while said contact needle remains in said operative position thereof if no weft thread is properly inserted so that during movement of said carrier means from said second to said first position thereof said contact needle engages said stationary contact and stops the loom.

9. A weft stop motion as set forth in claim 8 wherein said lever is a double-arm lever including a pivot pin at one end supporting said contact needle for turning movement between said inoperative and operative position, a support member having a cutout and a pivot in said cutout supporting said lever for turning movement between said first and second positions in which said lever abuts the walls of said cutout, a spring connected to the other end of said lever and to said support member for urging said lever to said second position, and wherein said cam follower means is a roller, and including a pin turnably supporting said roller on said lever.

10. A weft stop motion as set forth in claim 9 wherein said spring means for urging said contact needle into said operative position includes an arm projecting from said pin and a spring connecting said arm with said contact needle, and a stop secured to said pin and blocking turning movement of said contact needle in said operative position.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,975,747 10/ 1934 Hewton 139-370 2,638,942 5/1953 Hindle 139370 2,646,084 7/ 1953 Harris 139-195 2,674,277 4/ 1954 Siciliano 139370 X 2,819,737 1/1958 Opletal 139370 3,049,152 8/1962 Batty et al. 139370 3,145,739 8/1964 Metzler 13 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,040,684 5/ 1953 France. 1,261,463 4/1961 France.

675,514 5/ 1939 Germany.

MERVIN STEIN, Primary Examiner.

DONALD W. PARKER, Examiner.

J. KEE CHI, Assistant Examiner. 

1. IN A LOOM INCLUDING HEDDLE MEAANS FOR FORMING WARP SHEDS, AND A RECIPROCATING SLAY HAVING REED MEANS FOR BEATING DURING A FORWARD STROKE A WEFT THREAD INSERTED INTO A WARP SHED, IN COMBINATION, A WEFT THREAD STOP MOTION COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION, CARRIER MEANS MOUNTED ON THE LOOM AND BEING OPERATED BY SAID SLAY TO RECIPROCATE BETWEEN FIRST AND SECOND POSITIONS; AND CONTACT MEANS FOR CONTROLLING A CIRCUIT INCLUDING MEANS FOR STOPPING THE LOOM, SAID CONTACT MEANS INCLUDING A STATIONARY FIRST CONTACT MEMBER, A SECOND CONTACT MEMBER MOUNTED ON SAID CARRIER MEANS FOR MOVEMENT RELATIVE TO THE SAME BETWEEN AN OPERATIVE POSITION FOR ENGAGING SAID FIRST CONTACT MEMBER IN SAID FIRST POSITION OF SAID CARRIER MEANS AND AN INOPERATIVE POSITION SPACED FROM SAID FIRST CONTACT MEMBER IN SAID FIRST POSITION OF SAID CARRIER MENAS, SAID SECOND CONTACT MEMBER BEING SPACED FROM SAID FIRST CONTACT MEMBER IN SAID SECOND POSITION OF SAID CARRIER MEANS, AND MEANS URGING SAID SECOND CONTACT MEMBER INTO SADI OPERATIVE POSITION, SAID SECOND CONTACT MEMBER LOCATED PARTLY IN THE PATH OF MOVEMENT OF A PROPERLY INSERTED WEFT THREAD BEATEN BY SAID REED MEANS DURING THE FORWARD STROKE OF SAID SLAY SO AS TO BE ENGAGED AND MOVED BY A PROPERLY INSERTED WEFT THREAD FROM SAID OPERATIVE INTO SAID INOPERATIVE POSITION THEREOF WHILE SAID SECOND CONTACT MEMBER REMAINS IN SAID OPERATIVE POSITION IF THE WEFT THREAD IS NOT PROPERLY INSERTED SO THAT SURING MOVEMENT OF SAID CARRIER MEANS FROM SAID SECOND TO SAID FIRST POSITION THEREOF SAID SECOND CONTACT MEMBER IN SAID OPERATIVE POSITION THEREOF WILL ENGAGE SAID FIRST CONTACT MEMBER AND THUS STOP SAID LOOM. 